Why Working From Home is Ideal for Retirees

Thanks to modern medicine, people are living longer than they ever did. Add in economic downturns that have adversely impacted retirement savings and the extinction of the pensions of yesteryear, and you can see why people are rethinking how they want to live their lives during their “twilight years,” including working in retirement. In fact, according to a study done by Merrill Lynch and Age Wave, nearly 70% of the “pre-retirees” surveyed say they plan to work in retirement.

So, to all those Baby Boomers considering their version of retirement, I am here to tell you why working from home may be the ideal solution for you.

Here are four compelling reasons why working from home is ideal for retirees.

You can keep your skills sharp and your mind active.

There is the pre-conceived perception that retirement equates to a period of mental or physical decline. The truth is the brain, along with the rest of your body, requires stimulation to stay sharp. This fact has not gone unnoticed by today’s savvy retirees. They are leading more active and engaged lifestyles than ever.

In addition, the retiring generation has decades of expertise and experience that can be advantageous to an organization. Finding a telecommuting opportunity that leverages your skills, challenges your mind, and allows you to learn something new will keep your mind active, skills developed, and will help to eliminate boredom.

You can contribute to something bigger than yourself.

After a period of inactivity, many retirees find themselves feeling lonely and unfulfilled. Pursuing a work-at-home opportunity that helps others, like as a personal assistant or tutor, or even simply plugging into an organizational team where you can see the impact of your contribution, can be extraordinarily fulfilling.

You can continue to provide an income.

A lot of people find themselves in a financial situation where their savings just won’t stretch, and they must continue to work past average retirement age. The benefit of a work-at-home opportunity is that you can continue to earn an income that will pay the bills, without the hassle of a commute, maintaining an expensive professional wardrobe, or sacrificing some of the rest and relaxation you’ve earned. Or, if you have more than enough stashed away for retirement to live comfortably, the money you make from work-at-home pay can help to fund travel and hobbies, while enabling you to preserve your nest egg for the future and leave a legacy for your family.

You can enjoy the flexibility a work-at-home opportunity will offer.

One of the main perks of retirement is the leisure time and hobbies you will get to enjoy. People check off the items on their bucket list, spend more time traveling, and pursue the interests or hobbies they couldn’t focus on while maintaining their careers. Luckily, the flexibility that comes with work-at-home opportunities doesn’t prevent people from continuing to enjoy the aspects of retirement we all dream about. Depending on the job, you can work anywhere (scoop up the laptop and cell phone and balance work while visiting with your the grandkids); anytime (schedule your work in a way that allows you to take that pottery class); any amount (control the number of hours you work so that you can slow down the pace of your life a bit). It just takes a little diligence to find the opportunities and hobbies that will best suit the lifestyle career you want to achieve.

One of the biggest, most consistent warnings I’ve seen as I’ve done my research on working in retirement is to be sure that you only pursue “legit” work at home opportunities. There are a lot of work-at-home scams out there that are designed to trick people into providing banking information (under the guise of setting up an automatic paycheck deposit), pay money for information (like the envelope stuffing or assembly work scams), or sharing social security numbers and other sensitive information (as part of your “onboarding process). Research the companies and opportunities you are interested in and trust your gut when exploring a remote job.

Have you identified other reasons why working in retirement is the right solution for you? What type of work-from-home opportunities have you explored? Are there other benefits I haven’t mentioned? Leave your thoughts in the comments.

Having a hard time figuring out what work-at-home path is right for you? This post will give you a great place to start your work from home journey as a retiree.

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Christy Schutz is a communications professional and freelance writer focused on topics like employer/personal branding, career management, personal development, women in the workplace, and female entrepreneurs. She enjoys putting 16+ years of experience in the advertising, recruitment marketing, employee/internal communications and special events industries to good use by helping others to discover, develop and market their own distinct calling or mission. This Tampa Bay, FL-based Mom also keeps herself busy by raising 4 kids, caring for her husband & doting on her dogs Petey and Daisy!